Web-mounted pleating brackets

ABSTRACT

A hanger for pleated curtains comprises a flexible elongate web adapted for receiving fasteners to secure the web to a support, and a plurality of curtain extension blocks affixed to the web and extending orthogonally from a front surface thereof for receiving curtain supporting fasteners. The blocks are composed of wood and are substantially identical being secured to the web regularly spaced apart. The web is preferably composed of jute fabric and is attached with fasteners to a substantially horizontal wooden fascia backboard which is wall-mounted.

RELATED APPLICATION

This patent application is a continuation of pending patent application Ser. No. 11/163,585 entitled Web-Mounted Pleating Brackets filed on Oct. 24, 2005, priority from which is hereby claimed.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates in general to fixtures for holding hanging fabric to walls. More specifically, it relates to brackets for hanging the fabric from a top portion thereof to form pleats.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is common practice to cover the walls of interior spaces such as theaters and auditoriums with fabric for various functional and decorative reasons. Functionally, fabric sidewalls provide superior acoustic properties. To install sidewall curtains, it is well known to utilize a thin strip of metal having pleat-forming U-shaped extensions for engaging and securing the fabric. The extensions form hangers which project outwardly from the surface of the wall to form vertical pleats in hanging fabric when the top edge of the fabric is attached along the surface of the strip. Various examples of this type of prior art device are shown for example in U.S. Pat. No. 2,557,578 issued to Stallone; U.S. Pat. No. 3,785,426 issued to Sperling; U.S. Pat. No. 4,055,211 issued to Sperling; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,342,356 issued to Sickels et al. As shown in both of the Sperling patents, it is known to utilize a bracket with movable extending hangers to provide adjustable hangers and thereby the possibility of irregular spacing for the pleats in the fabric or to reduce the storage and shipping volume so that the disassembled brackets occupy less space.

Despite these advancements in the art, the present systems are still made from rigid materials and are most commonly formed from thin sheet metal. Therefore, even though the bracket strips are separable from the hanger extensions, they are difficult to handle and ship since the strips are provided in rigid elongate pieces approximately eight feet in length. In addition, although metal provides great economies of manufacture, it is less conducive to nailing or stapling the fabric than, for example, wood. There is therefore a need in the art to provide a versatile, pleat-forming fabric hanger system which is lightweight, economical to manufacture, may be conveniently compacted for storage and shipping, and which lends itself to ease of handling and installation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is the object of the invention to meet the needs in the art described above. The present invention has been devised in which wooden blocks are employed to provide the pleat-forming hanger extensions and a flexible web material is utilized to secure and position the wood blocks so they extend perpendicularly outward from the surface of the wall. Structural integrity is provided by the wallboard to which the web is tightly and very securely attached.

More specifically, the applicant has devised a hanger for pleated curtains comprising a flexible elongate web adapted for receiving fasteners to secure the web to a support, and a plurality of curtain extension blocks affixed to the web and extending orthogonally from a front surface thereof for receiving curtain supporting fasteners. The blocks are composed of wood and are substantially identical being secured to the web regularly spaced apart. The web is preferably composed of jute fabric and is attached with fasteners to a substantially horizontal wooden fascia backboard which is wall-mounted.

This construction provides many advantages. For example, the backing web assembled to the extension blocks may be rolled into a coil for compact shipping or storage. When a flexible material such as heavy jute is used for the webbing, the web can be easily nailed or stapled through to first secure the bracket assembly to a backboard or to subsequently attach the fabric along the surface of the web and hanger blocks. In addition, the web may be easily cut to length and the fact that the assembly is flexible makes it much easier for installers to handle than the rigid, elongate metal strips of the prior art.

From the following drawings and description of the preferred embodiment, it will be appreciated by those of skill in the art that the objects of the invention have been achieved. While the invention will be described with the reference to a specific embodiment, the following description is illustrative of the invention and is not to be construed as limiting the invention. Various modifications to the present invention can be made to the preferred embodiment by those skilled in the art without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention. It will be noted here that for better understanding like components are designated by the reference numerals throughout the various figures of drawing which follow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top right front perspective view of the curtain-hanging system of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a top right front perspective view of the flexible web with the pleat-forming extension blocks mounted thereto.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view showing the web/pleat block combination coiled compactly.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to FIG. 1, the present invention 11 comprises a flexible web preferably composed of a jute fabric to which regularly spaced wooden pleat-forming extension blocks 15 are mounted. The web 13 may be secured to fascia board 17 by way of fastener 16 such as staples. This figure also depicts a curtain 20 which is similarly affixed by staples to the extensions 15 and the front surface of the web 13 which forms pleats 21 in the curtain 20, when contiguously affixed along the web as shown. As can be seen from FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the blocks are substantially rectalinear, each having a planar rear surface 15 and parallel side surfaces 14 extending forwardly from opposing side edges of the rear surface, being perpendicular thereto. A front surface 19 is parallel to the rear surface.

FIG. 2 shows the curtain-hanging structure 11 in isolation. A series of evenly spaced wooden extension blocks 15 are secured to the web by any convenient means such as nails or staples 18. FIG. 3 depicts how the flexibility of the structures of the invention permits it to be coiled into a compact volume for ease of handling, storage, or shipping. Web 13 may be easily rolled into a coil around pleat blocks 15.

It should be understood that there may be other modifications and changes to the present invention that will be obvious to those of skill in the art from the foregoing description, however, the present invention should be limited only by the following claims and their legal equivalents. 

1. A curtain hanger for pleated curtains, comprising: (a) a plurality of substantially rectalinear blocks for forming curtain pleats, each of said blocks having a planar rear surface and substantially parallel side surfaces extending forwardly from opposing side edges of said rear surface being perpendicular thereto and further including a front surface parallel to said rear surface; (b) a web of flexible material extending closely along the surfaces of said blocks and being rigidly affixed thereto by first fastening means; and (c) wherein said web is rigidly affixed to a substantially horizontal mounting board by second fastening means located adjacent each of said block side edges, whereby said blocks are supported by said web being held thereby with the rear surfaces of said blocks in abutment with said board for supporting a curtain.
 2. The curtain hanger of claim 1 wherein said first fastening means and said second fastening means are fasteners which pierce said web.
 3. The curtain hanger of claim 2 wherein said first and said second fastening means are staples.
 4. The curtain hanger of claim 1 wherein said blocks are composed of wood.
 5. The curtain hanger of claim 1 wherein said blocks are directly supported only by said web.
 6. A method for creating a structure for hanging pleated curtains, comprising the steps of: (a) providing a plurality of substantially rectalinear blocks for forming curtain pleats, each of said blocks having a planar rear surface and substantially parallel side surfaces extending forwardly from opposing side edges of said rear surface being perpendicular thereto (b) fastening a web of flexible material closely along the surfaces of said blocks, said web being rigidly affixed thereto by first fastening means; and (c) fastening said web to a fascia mounting board, such that said web is rigidly affixed to the board by second fastening means located adjacent each of said block side edges, whereby said blocks are supported by said web being held thereby with the rear surfaces of said blocks in abutment with said board for supporting a curtain.
 7. The method of claim 6 wherein said first fastening means and said second fastening means are fasteners which pierce said web.
 8. The method of claim 7 wherein said first and said second fastening means are staples.
 9. The method of claim 6 wherein said blocks are composed of wood.
 10. The method of claim 6 wherein said blocks are directly supported only by said web.
 11. The method of claim 6 further including the step of transporting the web fastened to said blocks in a compacted state prior to fastening the web to the fascia mounting board.
 12. The method of claim 12 wherein said compacted state is forming said web and blocks into a coil.
 13. The curtain hanger of claim 1 further including a curtain contiguously affixed along the web. 